ScotRail: Aslef union members accept new pay offer

Train drivers have voted to accept a pay deal by ScotRail

Members of the Aslef union, which represents train drivers, have voted to accept a pay offer from ScotRail.

The deal means that drivers will see a 5% basic pay rise for 2023/24, backdated to 1 April 2023, with a further 1% increase from 1 October.

Aslef members have carried out overtime bans as part of the UK-wide pay dispute.

ScotRail's service delivery director David Simpson said the deal would help deliver more certainty on the railways.

He added: "We are grateful to our trade union colleagues for their constructive approach to negotiations, which has resulted in a well-deserved pay increase for our staff, while delivering value for the taxpayer in the challenging financial environment in which the railway operates."

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Train drivers at Aslef have recently carried out overtime bans, but the RMT union, which represents other rail workers, has announced more strikes which largely affect routes in England and Wales.

Aslef said 75% of its members in Scotland voted in favour of the deal on an 81% turnout.

This summer the RMT and Unite unions - which represent conductors, engineers, ticket examiners, station staff and others - accepted a similar deal.

Aslef Scotland organiser Kevin Lindsay said the agreement showed the importance of a "positive approach to industrial relations".

He added: "It is now high time that the Rail Delivery Group and the Tory government do the same in England and negotiate respectfully and with a willingness to pay our members what they need and deserve."